I often work late at school and my desk is somewhat out of sight so I sometimes overhear students talking about things Not Meant for Teacher Ears. Usually this merely piques my anthropological interest. Occasionally, however, I overhear something that requires intervention. Or not. Consider a recent incident:<\/p>\n
My grading trance is interrupted by an unknown boy saying sarcastically to another, “Your hair looks like Ethiopia!<\/em>” Sigh… I’m not sure what this means, but it can’t be good \u2014 somewhere on the spectrum from ignorantly inappropriate to overtly racist. The student repeats it, louder, “Seriously, your hair looks like ETHIOPIA!<\/em>” The other student makes an unintelligible, but baffled-sounding response, while I get up and head to the commons with my stern face. As I round the bend, he repeats it a third time, “Your hair really looks like Ethiopia…” I’m surprised to see a seventh grader who didn’t strike me as the type to say this sort of thing \u2014 he’s a sophisticated, culturally sensitive boy. I open my mouth, preparing to Summon him to a Conversation, when he continues, “…see, it’s kinda round here and has a thing sticking out on the right, just like we learned in geography!” I close my mouth and they walk onward, discussing the shape of Ethiopia and other nearby countries.<\/p>\n \n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I often work late at school and my desk is somewhat out of sight so I sometimes overhear students talking about things Not Meant for Teacher Ears. Usually this merely piques my anthropological interest. Occasionally, however, I overhear something that requires intervention. Or not. Consider a recent incident: My grading trance is interrupted by an … Continue reading Ethiopian Hair<\/span> ![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/stoccoroy.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/05\/ethiopia_map.gif?ssl=1\" "\\"ethiopia_map\\"")
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